The Seattle Times: Nation

The Seattle Times: Nation

Gene-therapy results touted in 2 advanced-cancer cases

By David Brown

The Washington Post

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WASHINGTON — Researchers from the National Cancer Institute on Thursday reported they have successfully treated two patients with advanced cancer using gene therapy.

Two men, both with the rapidly growing skin cancer melanoma, were given immune-system cells taken from their own blood and engineered to attack their tumors. They are alive, with no evidence of cancer, 18 months later. Fifteen other patients who got the same treatment died.